Public safety personnel may be equipped with multiple sensors that detect the personnel's surroundings and body status. For example, a first responder may be equipped with a holster sensor detecting whether an instrument is positioned in the holster, a blood pressure sensor detecting the first responder's blood pressure, and a temperature sensor detecting the first responder's body temperature. These sensors may transmit data to the first responder's radio, which collects and processes the data.
The sensors and the radio may form a personal area network, and the sensors may communicate with the radio using a wireless communication protocol. Depending on the communication protocol used by the sensors and the radio, the number of simultaneous connections between the radio and the sensors may be limited. Therefore, in some situations, the radio may not timely receive data from a particular sensor. Also, in situations where the radio polls each sensor for data, the radio may waste power and air time polling a sensor for data when a sensor does not have data for the radio.
Skilled artisans will appreciate that elements in the figures are illustrated for simplicity and clarity and have not necessarily been drawn to scale. For example, the dimensions of some of the elements in the figures may be exaggerated relative to other elements to help to improve understanding of embodiments of the present invention.
The apparatus and method components have been represented where appropriate by conventional symbols in the drawings, showing only those specific details that are pertinent to understanding the embodiments of the present invention so as not to obscure the disclosure with details that will be readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art having the benefit of the description herein.